Individual paper punch mechanisms have been ganged into an assembly for simultaneously punching of two, three, four or even five or more round 9/32" (7 mm) holes in an edge margin of a stack of paper sheets inserted into the assembly. This type punch is exemplified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,368,790 and 3,724,734. The resultant apertured stacked sheets are then removed for assembly with suitable fasteners such as ACCO--fasteners or those seen in U.S. Pat. No. 4,730,972. Specially sized separate punch mechanisms and apparatus have also been developed and commercialized for the simultaneous punching of a large number of rectangular apertures, for example 19 or 21 apertures, in a marginal edge of a stack of paper sheets. Such rectangularly punched sheets are then taken to a separate apparatus for a so-called "plastic resilient loop" binding operation where plastic binding strips having a corresponding number (19 or 21) of integral curled resilient binding fingers. The broad resilient loop type binding is seen in U.S. Pat. No. 1,970,285 to Douvry. Binding machines for this type of loop binding are seen in U.S. Pat. No. 2,257,714 in which the binding is placed over a series of hooks, corresponding to the number and spacing of the loops, and an operating lever is pulled down to move a second series of hooks laterally to a position within the loops and downward to open the loops sufficiently to allow placement or threading of rectangular apertures of apertured paper sheets thereover, with return of the lever to its original position allowing the resilient loops to return to their original closed form. The bound booklet then is lifted off the first series of hooks. This general type of device is in commercial use by General Binding Corporation in its GBC 2000 machine. U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,593,805 and 2,851,708 are directed to similar loop-opening devices, the latter including angular guide slots and fingers pivotally carried by a slide member on the machine.
Binding machines for the Douvry-type binder with punch capabilities have also been developed as seen in U.S. Pat. No. 3,060,780. An exterior handle extending transverse to a paper platen is movable downwardly to do the punching. A second series of hooks with bent tabs mounted on a bar are moved into latched position within the loops. The same downward handle movement moves the tabs rearwardly, opening the loops for assembly of the punched paper sheets thereon. The moving handle and laterally moving bar are returned to their original positions and the bound booklet removed. U.S. Pat. No. 3,699,596 is directed to a punch and binding machine for the loop-type bindings in which a lever in one direction operates the punch and in the other direction operates to move the comb laterally and to open the curled fingers forwardly.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,122,761 discloses a camming drive for a book binding machine which moves an uncurling slide both transversely and longitudinally of a comb. U.S. Pat. No. 3,227,023 is directed to a powered punching apparatus with manual binding action. An uncurling slide also moves both transversely and longitudinally and provision is made to adjust a gauge plate dependent on the depth of holes to be punched and adjust movement of the slide dependent on the diameter of the binding element. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,613,266 and 4,607,993 also show similar binding elements and machines including a cover defining a table means aligned with the punch means which have guide means for positioning both paper sheets and oversized covers on the table means, and a paper stack thickness gauge, respectively. It is believed that elements of the last four patents are incorporated in the GBC ImageMaker 2000 machine.